The Hunt
by Vol lady
Summary: Jarrod finally finds the time to go on a hunt with Nick and Heath, but the fun turns serious when a rockslide, bad weather, and a larcenous farmer move in.
1. Chapter 1

The Hunt

Chapter 1

Nick's mouth fell open. "I don't believe it. You're actually gonna do it."

"Yes, I am," Jarrod said, wiped his mouth and put his napkin down on his empty plate.

Nick and Heath looked at each other, then back at their brother, while their mother and sister just quietly smirked.

"Are you sure you can still aim a rifle at a six-point buck and actually hit him?" Nick asked. "I mean, I can't remember the last time you went on a hunt with us."

Jarrod smiled. "Nick, I can aim a rifle and hit anything I please, and when I bag my buck before you bag yours, the proof will be right there in front of your face."

"Well, now, I'll put a wager on that," Heath said. "Why don't we each put a twenty in the pot and whoever bags the buck first takes it all."

Jarrod reached for his wallet and plopped a twenty dollar bill onto the table. "You're on, Brother Heath."

Nick did the same and then handed both bills over to Audra. "Sister Dear, you are keeper of the kitty."

Heath saw his wallet was pretty empty. "Looks like I'll have to chip in later, but I've got money upstairs. I'm good for it."

Victoria smiled. "Just don't go getting careless in your eagerness to win. Where are you going, anyway?"

"Up toward the Sierras," Nick said. "Not sure how far we'll end up going, but we each aim to have a buck by the time we get back."

Audra took the money. "So you'll be gone for a couple weeks?"

Victoria smirked.

The men just smiled. "Back in three days, I'll wager," Heath said.

"You're all ready to wager when you don't have any money on you, aren't you?" Nick said.

The men were as happy as little boys, Victoria noted to herself. The three of them hadn't been on a hunting trip together in a long time – Nick and Heath usually went together, but Jarrod was usually out of town or too busy to go. She was glad the three of them would spend some time together, now that it was late autumn and the air was crisp and the deer were easier to spot in the woods. They would come back hale and hardy and happy.

The men all got up from the dinner table. "Well, we'd better get some rest if we're gonna get an early start," Nick said.

One by one they kissed their mother and sister and left to turn in early.

Victoria and Audra were left smiling at each other. "Who do you think will win the bet?" Audra asked.

"That's anyone's guess," Victoria said.

Audra thought she detected some concern in Victoria's expression. "Are you worried about that bet?"

"That they'll get careless? No. I'm not worried about anything. Just happy to see that Jarrod is actually taking the time to go."

Audra understood. Jarrod was always working these days. "He'll come back with his outlook restored."

Victoria smiled. "Well, one thing is for sure. We better be ready to help put up a lot of venison if reality matches their hopes."

XXXXXX

Breakfast was extra early in the morning. The Barkley men wanted to be out the door before the sun came up, so they wolfed down their food and gathered up to go while it was still dark.

"You saddle the horses, Heath," Jarrod said. "Nick, you get the saddlebags together and I'll get the canteens filled."

"Gave yourself the easy work, huh, Pappy?" Nick said.

"Age has its privileges, Brother Nick," Jarrod said, kissed his mother and sister and headed out the front door with Heath.

Nick kissed Victoria and Audra, too. "We'll be back in a few days, buck or no buck."

Silas came hurrying in from the kitchen, bringing bags of food and coffee to the door. "Don't leave without provisions, Mr. Nick."

Nick took them gratefully. "We'll probably forget something, but I don't want it to be the food."

"Do you have the whiskey?" Audra asked.

Nick looked shocked. His mother and sister were not supposed to know they took a bit of liquor along on these trips. But the shock wore off when the women smirked at him. "I have the whiskey," he admitted.

"Be careful out there," Victoria said. "Don't accidentally shoot each other trying to be the first one to bag that buck."

"We'll be fine," Nick said. "See you in a couple days!"

Their horses and pack mule were ready to go just as the sky began to lighten in the east. "Let's get moving before the deer start ducking for cover!" Heath called and headed out first.

Nick and Jarrod were right behind him.

XXXXXX

They rode together almost all day, making their way up into the higher elevations east of home, and they did not see one deer. As they made camp near a small stream, they each moaned and groaned over their beef and beans.

"We'll have better luck tomorrow," Heath said.

"Optimist," Nick said accusingly.

"Doesn't pay to be pessimistic about it," Heath said. "Besides, I plan on bagging the first one I see and winning that bet."

"You dream a lot, too," Jarrod said. "The first one is mine."

"What, you claiming 'age' rights again?" Nick asked.

"With age comes experience, and with experience comes skill."

Nick laughed. "You haven't even been out in years. Your skills are getting pretty rusty."

They continued needling each other until Heath brought up something else. "Did you get a look at that farm we passed?"

"Yeah," Nick said. "What about it?"

"I know it was the farm where the McAdamses lived, but it sure didn't look like it anymore. It looked a little too rough around the edges."

"Maybe they had a bad year," Jarrod said.

"Maybe," Heath said.

"You think the McAdamses sold out?" Nick asked.

"Don't know," Heath said. "Just wonder if maybe we oughtta check in on whoever is in that farm when we're on our way home. Being neighborly, you know?"

"All right," Nick said. "We'll be neighborly."

They talked some more, drank a little of the Irish whiskey Nick had brought along, and then settled in for the night. The sky was beautiful and clear, and the stars were all over the place. Each one of the Barkley brothers stared up in silence, thinking private thoughts, enjoying the night air and the thought of bagging that first buck.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

They were up and eating breakfast before the sun came up, and they were saddled and ready to go just as the sky began to lighten. They traveled uphill almost right away, heading into the higher, rockier parts of the mountain. This being the time of year many men were out hunting, the deer seemed to gravitate to the more difficult (for humans) terrain.

The Barkley men moved quietly and kept their eyes open. As the light increased, it was easier to make out the rocks and the trees.

And Jarrod saw it first. He held his hand up to stop his brothers and was down off his horse quietly and quickly, handing the reins to Heath. He had his rifle leveled with the aid of a tree, and he fired before Nick or Heath even saw the buck.

"Ha-HA!" Jarrod gloated. "Looks like I win."

Heath tethered the horses to a tree. Heath also tethered the pack mule, and Jarrod led the way only about twenty yards into the woods where the buck he shot lay dead in the leaves.

They all looked down at him. Jarrod bent and lifted the buck's head by the antlers.

"Boy, howdy, six points," Heath said. "I never even saw him."

"Neither did I," Nick said. "And those tired old lawyer eyes of yours did."

Jarrod smiled. "Just eat your hearts out, boys. Experience wins out again."

The three of them got the buck back to the mule and tied it tightly over him. The mule looked annoyed about it, but did not resist it.

Jarrod rested his arm on his catch and grinned. "Thanks for asking me along, dear brothers. I always like winning a bet."

Nick and Heath both grunted, and the three of them mounted up again and kept moving up into the mountain.

XXXXXXXXXX

"There," Heath said quietly as Nick looked over his shoulder. A few yards back, Jarrod held the horses and the mule, very tightly to make sure they didn't shy when Heath took his shot.

Heath carefully braced his rifle against a tree and took aim at the beautiful buck moving slowly through the trees about fifty feet away. It was going to be a tough shot with all the trees in the way, but Heath aimed carefully at a clear spot as the buck moved into it. He fired.

He missed.

The buck took off, disappearing downhill within seconds.

"Aaaah," Heath muttered and put his rifle down.

Nick gave him a clap on the shoulder. "It was a risky shot anyway."

"Yeah, but he was a beauty. We'd have had us a month of venison."

They turned and went back to the road where Jarrod held the horses.

"Nice try," Jarrod said.

"Yeah," Heath said as he mounted up again.

They kept moving up the mountain, slowly, quietly, scanning the woods every moment, but the time for the noon break came around and they had not seen any more deer. They made camp, and Nick got the fire going while Jarrod and Heath took Jarrod's buck down off the mule, to give him a little break.

Nick started the coffee, saying, "Maybe we need to start back down. We might have more luck down below."

"We didn't see anything until we started climbing," Heath said.

Jarrod nodded. "Why don't we keep going and make camp for the night further up, then head back down in the morning? We can set up for a couple hours near where we saw the buck Heath missed, see if another one comes that way."

"Did you see a deer trail there?" Nick asked.

"Not really, not with all these new fallen leaves, but they're creatures of habit, like us. The one Heath missed might even come back."

"You're dreaming," Nick said. "But if you want to turn around tomorrow morning and take it really slow going down, I'll go for it."

Heath said, "I think Jarrod's right. If we don't bag something today, we ought to ease our way back down tomorrow and the next day. Might have better luck, and we can make it home by nightfall the day after tomorrow."

"Okay," Nick said.

They ate in companionable silence, took care of personal business, and broke camp after a little over an hour. Nick and Heath reloaded the buck onto the mule, and they were off again.

XXXXXXX

Nick's chance at a good buck came as the sun was beginning to dip, giving everything downhill a soft backlight but also getting into the men's eyes. Nick took a chance and looked uphill, into the rocks up there that were lit up for him by the setting sun. He stopped and held his hand up to stop his brothers. They stopped and looked.

There was a nice doe up in the rocks, and nearby a handsome buck, rubbing his antlers against a tree, not paying attention to the humans on the road. Nick climbed out of the saddle slowly and quietly, and he found a good rock to rest his rifle onto. He took aim.

And the buck and the doe quietly disappeared over the rocks.

Nick cursed under his breath. "They never even saw us."

Heath said, "Why don't you move a little further up the road and look again? Maybe you can spot him."

Nick took his brother's advice and walked slowly and carefully ahead, looking up into the rocks again. He walked a good tenth of a mile, but never even saw movement up there again. Frustrated, he came back to where his brothers were waiting.

"No good, huh?" Jarrod asked.

Nick shook his head and put his rifle back into its scabbard. As he remounted, he said, "Sun will be down in an hour or so. We better keep an eye out for a good spot to camp for the night."

They continued on uphill, still watching the rocks uphill of the road, but they never spotted that buck again. They did find a level spot on the uphill side of the road. There were rocks above the level spot, which was only about thirty feet by fifteen, but there was a spring leaking fresh water just a few feet ahead next to the road.

They made camp, refilled their canteens, and unsaddled the horses. Nick and Heath took Jarrod's buck off of the mule while Jarrod got a fire started and made coffee. Before long, they were eating together. After a little more whiskey and a few off color stories, it was time to turn in.

"I'll take first watch," Heath offered. They would have to be more vigilant now that they had the buck with them.

Nick agreed to the second watch and Jarrod to the third. While his brothers slept, Heath kept the fire going. They traded off their watch duties, and soon the sky was beginning to lighten as Jarrod began to make coffee.

Nick and Heath stirred when they smelled ham on the frying pan. Jarrod grinned at them as they each got up and came over for a whiff. As soon as they took care of their personal business, they came back and ate breakfast together.

"So, we backtrack and take it good and slow," Nick said as they began to break camp.

"Yep," Heath said and put the cooking utensils back in their bag and headed for the mule. "Nick, why don't you help me get the buck on the mule?"

Jarrod said, "I'll start saddling."

Nick was next to Heath, reaching for the buck they had laid out in the rocks. Jarrod was on the other side of the camp when it hit.

At first it was just a small movement in the land beneath their feet. They all stopped, stood up straight, and looked at each other. Then they looked up at the rocks, uphill. Things began to rock and roll underneath them, and rocks began to fall from above.

"Rockslide!" Nick yelled.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The slight movement became moderate and then the earth began to rumble like nobody's business. More rocks began to fall down on them like heavy raindrops. Every man ran for the cover of bigger rocks and stayed hunkered down.

Rocks landed on the line the horses and mule were tethered to, and the panicked animals reared and tore away as hard as they could. The closest to them, Nick made a grab for the line, but he couldn't hold it. The earth continued to shake and roll like a stormy sea as the rocks kept tumbling down, and the animals ran as fast as they could, trying to escape it.

All the men could do was wait until the falling of the rocks eased off. When it finally did, Nick and Heath came out from their cover and found each other. They were both looking in the direction the horses had run.

"You all right?" Nick asked.

"Some bruises is all. We might have a load of trouble finding those horses," Heath said.

"Let's find Jarrod first," Nick said.

They looked. Rocks of all sizes had fallen all around the camp and as far as they could see. They could not see their older brother.

"Jarrod?!" Nick yelled.

No answer.

Panic set in. "Where was he last?" Nick asked.

Heath pointed to a pile of rocks on the other side of the camp. "Over here."

They ran to where they thought Jarrod had been, but there were only rocks.

"Jarrod?!" Nick yelled again. "Jarrod, answer me!"

"I'm right here, Nick," his calm voice came from about fifteen feet away, deep into the fallen rocks.

Nick and Heath made their way carefully over the rocks. Some were so big they knew they could never free their brother without the help of the horses – and as bad luck would have it, they found Jarrod trapped under some rocks that size.

He looked all right, but his right leg almost up to the hip was trapped under several big rocks. Even as Nick and Heath leaned into the rocks to try to move them, they would not budge.

"I ran the wrong way for cover," Jarrod said.

"Can we slide you out?" Heath asked.

Jarrod shook his head. "My leg is caught. I don't know if it's crushed or not – I really can't feel it."

"Can you move it at all?" Nick asked.

Jarrod tried, grimacing. "I can move my foot a little, but the leg is trapped good."

"Pain?" Heath asked.

Jarrod shook his head. "Not yet."

Jarrod was caught sitting almost upright against some fallen rocks. There was some blood on his right temple.

Nick said, "I'm gonna get some water. You got a bloody knot on your forehead. I want to clean it up."

"Clean your own bloody face up first. I'm not going anywhere," Jarrod said.

"Heath, why don't you see if you can go find those horses?" Nick said as he and Heath went back to where their saddles and canteens were still in camp. Then, before Heath left, Nick said, "I'll see what I can do with Jarrod, but if you don't find those horses fast, come back here soon, okay?"

Heath nodded and took off.

Nick found much of the campsite itself relatively unscathed. He picked up his canteen and carried it back to where Jarrod was trapped.

"Are you two all right?" Jarrod asked as Nick took a clean bandana from his pocket, got it wet, and cleaned the wound on Jarrod's forehead.

"Some bruises," Nick said. "I got a nasty gash on my cheek. I'll clean it when I'm done with you. We gotta get you out of here, though. And get us down off this mountain."

"Gonna be tough getting down if the horses are gone," Jarrod said.

Nick took a look at the knot on Jarrod's forehead. It looked superficial, but there was no way to really be sure how bad it was. Nick took the wet bandana and blotted the blood off his own cheek. "Don't give up yet. Heath's gone looking for them. Maybe they didn't go far."

Jarrod closed his eyes. "We'd better watch out for more rock coming down."

"Hey, don't go to sleep on me, open your eyes," Nick said.

Jarrod did as he was told. "You're not gonna be able to budge these rocks off my leg without the horses, either."

"You're just full of sunshine today, aren't you?"

Jarrod chuckled. "You're just mad because I got the first buck."

"I didn't think you had it in you anymore, Pappy. Here, drink some water."

Jarrod took a swig and momentarily closed his eyes again. "I'm beginning to feel my leg. Doesn't hurt. I don't even think anything's broken. It's just trapped."

"I hope you're right. That would make it easier to get down out of here once we get you out from under these rocks."

Nick started looking at the rocks more carefully. The heavier ones were wedged in together pretty solidly. Nick wasn't sure how they were going to budge them even with the horses, and then he noticed they were going to have to be extra careful because moving one could cause others to shift. He sighed. Jarrod was in a helluva fix, even if his leg wasn't broken.

It wasn't much longer before Nick saw Heath reappear about twenty feet away. Heath waved him over.

Nick said, "Be right back," to Jarrod, left him the canteen and climbed over the rocks to where Heath was.

"I went about a quarter mile down the road," Heath said. "I didn't see anything of the horses. I'm gonna have to go a lot further. How's Jarrod?"

"Stuck," Nick said. "Got a knot on his head, but he says he can feel the leg and it doesn't seem to be broken."

"We gotta get him outta there before we get another slide."

"Without horses, that ain't gonna happen. You go on, look further. Maybe they're not much further off."

"I'll go a mile or two. Might take me an hour or more to get back, depending on the condition of the road."

Nick nodded. "Just go."

Heath took off again.

Nick gathered up the blankets in the campsite and took them to where Jarrod lay. It was a good thing. Jarrod was beginning to look a little shocky, indicating he was hurt even when he didn't think so. Nick began to carefully cover him with the blankets and tuck them in. He tucked the canteen in between Jarrod and one of the large rocks.

Jarrod stirred. "Heath find the horses?"

"Not yet," Nick said. "I'm gonna make sure you're warm. We might be here a while."

"At least we have all day before darkness sets in," Jarrod said. "With any luck, you'll have me out of here by then."

"Yeah," Nick said, but he was beginning to worry about that. He looked again at the rocks piled all around Jarrod's leg, gave one or two a tentative push, but there was no moving any of the bigger ones, and he was too concerned with the rocks shifting if he moved the smaller ones.

Jarrod's eyes were drifting closed again.

"Hey, Pappy, talk to me," Nick said. "Just keep talking to me."

"About what?" Jarrod asked, shaking himself awake.

"Anything. Recite me a jury argument or something."

Jarrod chuckled. "That would put YOU to sleep."

"So you finally admit it. Most of the jurors you talked to went to sleep."

"I admit nothing," Jarrod said, and he started to fade again.

Nick slapped him gently on the side of the face. "Come on, Jarrod, talk. Say anything. Recite the Gettysburg Address."

"What makes you think I know it?"

"Didn't you write it? Weren't you old Abe's writer while you were in Washington?"

"Only met him twice – he remembered me the second time. Said 'Jarrod' was a name he hadn't heard much of."

"So start reciting already."

Jarrod sighed. "Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation…"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

It was about an hour before Heath came back. Nick was still with Jarrod but heard him coming and saw him come closer to where his brothers were.

"Did you find the horses?" Nick asked.

Heath shook his head. "I went about two miles down the road, didn't see them."

"Is there much more rock on the road?"

"Here and there. Won't keep us from getting down."

Nick said, "Okay, you gotta keep going, all the way down if you have to. Find somebody and get some help."

"Wait a minute," Jarrod said wearily. "Wait, please."

They looked at him. The "please" was somewhat alarming.

"You both need to go," Jarrod said.

"I'm staying with you," Nick said quickly.

Jarrod shook his head slowly. "No. Listen to me. We could have another slide at any time, and up here in these rocks you could get hurt, too, if they start to shift."

"I'm not leaving you alone," Nick said.

"Nick, will you for once in your life listen to me without arguing?"

Nick sighed. "All right. I'm listening."

Jarrod looked up. "We have more than one problem here. Look up at that sky."

Nick looked. He admitted to himself, his eyes had been only on Jarrod and the rocks since the slide. Heath had looked at the sky half an hour ago and saw what Jarrod, and now Nick, were seeing. The sky was beginning to cloud up. Thick, grim clouds were moving in.

Jarrod looked at his brothers. "The altitude we're at, that could be snow coming in."

"I'm not leaving you," Nick said.

"You have to," Jarrod said. "What good is it going to do if you're stuck up here with me when that storm blows in, or if another slide hits? I've got my overcoat and nice blankets to hunker down in. You got one overcoat."

"Jarrod, we might not be able to get back up here before the snow starts," Heath said.

"I know," Jarrod said. "That's why you have to do something for me. When you get down, if you look up here and see bad weather – don't come back."

They were stunned. "Jarrod – " Nick said.

"Don't argue with me," Jarrod said. "If the weather is bad, you're not gonna be able to help me anyway. All you're gonna do is get yourself hurt or killed. If you get down and the weather is bad up here, you don't come back until it clears."

Nick and Heath looked at each other. If bad weather set in, Jarrod might very well die of exposure before they could get back. He wasn't even hurt, but he could die. Neither one of them wanted to leave him here. Heath tried to push on one of the larger rocks. It would not move.

"Listen," Jarrod said. "The faster you pull out, the better chance you'll have of getting down to get some horses and back up to me. So get on outta here, and you watch the road while you're moving, and you watch the weather up here. And if it's bad up here – you do not come back. Understood?"

Nick and Heath looked at each other, hesitating.

"Swear it!" Jarrod ordered.

Nick squeezed his eyes closed and nodded, accepting his older brother's orders. Heath accepted them by lifting his sidearm out of its holster, pulling Jarrod's hand out from under the blankets and putting the gun into Jarrod's hand. Jarrod smiled at him.

Jarrod pulled the gun under the blanket and held it on his lap. "Get outta here."

They hesitated, but they left without speaking to him again. Once they were gone, Jarrod closed his eyes. "Dear God, do me a favor and make sure my brothers make it down all right."

Then he looked at the sky again. The clouds were getting even thicker, and the air on his face was beginning to feel damp. "God, if I have any favors coming, give me one right now. Give my brothers the sense to stay down below when the storm hits. They get foolishly brave sometimes. You probably already know that. But dear God, don't let them get hurt on my account."

Then he closed his eyes. He was tired, and it was getting even harder to stay awake. He fought the darkening that was settling into his brain, but he knew he was losing to it. Stupid, stupid – stuck like this when the leg wasn't even injured. Damned bad luck having that storm roll in, and having the rockslide in the first place. But Jarrod let all of that fade away as his sense faded away. "Guess I'm yours if you went to all this trouble to get me, God," Jarrod whispered.

He pulled the blankets up a bit over his face and the world faded away.

XXXXXXX

The road led downhill, and whenever they could, Nick and Heath ran. A few hundred feet down the road, it was blocked by small rockslides, but they were able to get over them easily.

"The horses must have gotten over these slides, too," Nick said.

"Soon as they find something they want to eat, they ought to stop," Heath said.

"Or when they get to the creek. Maybe we'll get lucky and come on them before we have to go all the way to that farm we passed on the way up."

After a while, the rocky hillside gave way to nothing but trees. They came to more level ground and to the creek where they thought the horses might be, but they were not there.

"Where the hell did those mangy animals go?!" Nick blurted out. "CoCo! CoCo!"

"Give it up, Nick, CoCo never comes when you call," Heath said.

They stopped at the creek for some water and a quick rest. Heath looked at the sky again and did not like how dark it was getting. A cold wind was beginning to rise. It might be a rain storm down at this level, but it was going to be snow higher up.

They looked at each other.

"He's gonna die up there if we don't get to him soon," Nick said. "He's not even hurt bad, he's just trapped, and he's gonna die."

Heath said, "Let's get going."

They got up and hurried on down the road. A cold rain was beginning to fall when they spotted the farm they'd passed earlier in the day. They ran as fast as they could to the place and banged on the front door.

An unhappy looking man of about forty opened the door. It was not Mr. McAdams.

"We need help," Nick panted. "We need horses – "

"Come on in," the man said.

There was a big room with a sink, pump and some cabinets off in a corner. A woman looking just as unhappy was working at a woodstove there. She looked up at them.

"How'd you get out here without horses?" the man asked.

"We had horses – they ran off in a rockslide," Heath said.

Nick said, "Our brother is trapped in a slide up on the mountain. We need horses so we can get back up there and get him free. It's gonna be snowing up there anytime."

"You'll need to pay," the man said.

"We'll pay. How much do you want?" Nick asked, reaching for his wallet.

"Forty dollars," the man said.

Nick gave it to him. "Where are the horses?"

"In the barn."

Nick and Heath hurried out to the barn without another word. It was hard to pull the door open because the wind was picking up, but they got it wrenched open and went inside.

And found their own horses there, all three of them, plus the mule, in stalls, lathered and still looking scared.

Nick and Heath looked at each other. The man had sold them their own horses.

"Forget it, Nick," Heath said.

They gave their horses as quick a brushing as they could and got them out of the stalls. They rode their own mounts bareback and brought Jarrod's and the mule along with them. They tried to push their way back onto the mountain, but they'd only gotten as far as the creek before the rain turned into snow.

They stopped to give the horses some water and a rest, and they looked ahead, up onto the mountain where they'd left their brother. There was a wall of snow beginning to blanket the higher elevations.

Nick said, "Come on, we have to hurry," and mounted up again.

Heath did not. He just looked up at the heights, then at Nick. "Nick – we can't help him in this storm."

"Mount up!" Nick yelled.

"Nick – he was right. We can't help him in this. We can only get ourselves hurt. He told us not to come back if the weather was like this. We swore - "

Nick dismounted, came over to Heath, and hit him.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Heath fell flat on his back, a stray rock hitting him right in the kidney area. He rolled over in pain and groaned.

Nick loomed over him. "Get up!"

Heath struggled up on one elbow. "Nick – " he pleaded, tears in his eyes. "We can't help him. We can only make things worse."

Nick went to kick him, but Heath rolled away and jumped up.

Now Heath's eyes were on fire. "You think I like leaving him up there?! You think I like knowing I can't help him?! We swore!"

"There's not much snow up there yet!" Nick yelled. "We can get to him and the horses and mule can pull the rocks away enough for us to get him out! You stay here if you want, but I'm going back up there and I'm gonna get him out!"

Heath only waited a moment before he let Nick go. Nick was going back up there, and no force in this world was going to stop him. And maybe Nick was right. Even if it meant risking themselves, even if it meant disregarding what Jarrod wanted, maybe they should go back up there and try to save him. When Nick mounted up, Heath did the same and went after him.

XXXXXXX

The wind picked up and blew snow into Jarrod's face, but even if it was uncomfortable, at least it woke him up. Jarrod tried to keep his hat over his face as the wind increased, but it blew away from him. Soon the wind was sending stinging ice particles into his eyes. Jarrod wished he was on the other side of the big rocks trapping him, because at least there would be a wind shadow there. He fought to keep his face covered somehow. All he could do was cover his head with the blankets as the snow began to blow harder and pile up on top of him.

This was not the way he wanted to die, but then there really wasn't any particular way he did want to die. He tried to relax, and he tried to resign himself to whatever was coming. He consciously evened out his breathing, taking deeper breaths, trying to shelter his face from the wind while still getting fresh air in.

He began to shiver, and soon he was shivering even more as his body tried to stay warm. The more he shivered, the more afraid he became. He tried to keep breathing deeply, to ease the panic coming after him. He tried counting his breaths – one, two, three…. He tried mentally reciting the Gettysburg Address one more time.

But as time went by, he began to relax. He lost track of the Gettysburg Address somewhere around the "dedicated here" and the "here dedicated." He felt himself forgetting to breathe deeply, and then he began lose his sense of being. He forgot to be afraid. It was an odd, even a pleasant feeling.

The thought that they were going to come back and find him dead, buried in snow, passed idly by as he began to fade out. It didn't matter. He was sure they had made it down and they were safe. That was the most important thing, that his brothers were safe.

XXXXXXX

Getting back up to where they had left Jarrod was slow, difficult going. There were a couple spots that were sheltered from the storm and they could move faster for a tenth of a mile or so, but the storm always came back into their faces.

 _Heath was right. He's gonna be dead_ , Nick thought to himself. _By the time we get there, he's gonna be dead._

They began to come across the smaller rockslides, and it was hard and slippery going across, but they made it. They got to their camp as the snow began to fall even heavier. They saw their saddles under a couple inches of snow.

Heath said, "I'll saddle the horses. You get to Jarrod."

Nick nodded and scrambled over the rocks that held his older brother captive. He found him under just as much snow as lay in the camp, just his face exposed and then only slightly turned to the side for air. He had covered his head with the blanket, but there was still some white on the side of his face and in his black hair.

"Jarrod – " Nick tried, but Jarrod didn't stir.

Nick slipped a hand inside the blankets, feeling for a heartbeat. Thank God, it was there.

Nick slipped his way back over the rocks. Heath was getting the ropes ready to be tied to the horns of the saddles on all the horses and to rope he had rigged up on the mule.

"He's alive," Nick said.

Heath handed him the lasso ends of three ropes, saying, "You get these set and let me know when to pull."

Nick nodded. "We'll pull the rocks away from him. Maybe we'll get lucky and moving one rock will get him free."

Heath nodded as Nick took the ropes back over the slippery slide. Once beside Jarrod again, he took a hard look, trying to decide which rock to move first. He went for the one that would be most easily moved away from Jarrod, toward Heath.

Nick secured the ropes around the rock – fortunately, the rock had a lip he could slip the ropes securely under. Then he began pushing on the rock, yelling, "Pull!"

Heath got the horses moving, pulling the rock ever so slightly. Then it rolled over once and stopped.

"Hold up! Hold up!" Nick yelled.

Nick tried to get Jarrod out of his trap, but even though the rock rolled over and away from Jarrod, the remaining rocks were still holding him in.

The snow was getting worse. The wind was beginning to howl.

Heath had stopped the horses and backed them up until the ropes went slack. Nick quickly moved the ropes to the next rock he wanted to get out of the way, and yelled, "Move to the right and pull!"

Heath got the horses moving to the right and forward again. The rock rolled a little, and then one of the ropes slipped off.

"Hold it!" Nick yelled.

Heath held the horses.

Nick struggled to get the rope back over the rock. His hands were too cold, even with gloves. He got the rope looped over the rock, and it immediately slipped off again.

"Come on! Come on!" Nick growled to himself. They were running out of time.

He finally got it back over again and yelled for Heath to start forward. Heath urged the horses on again.

The rock rolled fairly easily.

But Jarrod screamed.

"Hold up! Hold up!" Nick yelled.

Heath stopped the horses and Nick bent beside Jarrod. Jarrod was crying out like a wounded animal, reaching toward his leg.

"Jarrod – " Nick cried. Tears were freezing onto his face.

"Move it! Move it!" Jarrod cried out loud.

"Pull!" Nick yelled to Heath.

Heath had the horses pull. The rock moved further. Nick grabbed Jarrod under the arms and finally was able to pull him out of his perch in the rocks, out from under the remaining rocks on top of his leg.

Nick collapsed beside Jarrod once he'd pulled him free. Heath tethered the horses to a sturdy tree, scrambled over the rocks and fell down beside them.

"He's free," Nick breathed, but Jarrod continued to cry out in obvious pain.

Heath got down and looked at Jarrod's leg. He felt for a break, but even though he didn't feel any, Jarrod cried out again like someone was killing him.

Heath pulled the pantleg up. There was a large gash in Jarrod's calf just above the boot, bleeding badly. Heath grabbed the spare bandana he carried in his pocket, lowered the pantleg and tied the bandana around the leg where the gash was.

Nick took hold of Jarrod's face and pulled it toward him. "Jarrod! Jarrod!"

Jarrod finally quit crying out and focused on Nick.

"We got the horses," Nick said. "We'll help you over the rocks, but you gotta try to walk."

Jarrod nodded.

Nick and Heath got him up, Nick supporting him on the side with the injured leg, Heath on the other side. They got him across the rocks, falling down as they reached the last of the slide. They all went down, but Nick and Heath got up and pulled Jarrod up with them.

They reached the horses.

"Can you stay in the saddle?" Heath asked.

Jarrod nodded. Then suddenly he grabbed Heath angrily by the front of his coat. "I told you not to come back up here!" he snarled, and he meant it.

"I know," Heath said. "Come on, now, mount up."

They managed to get Jarrod on his horse, their three blankets still over his back and tucked under his legs, and then they mounted their own horses. Then they started back down the mountain, slowly and carefully, the snow and wind now at their backs.

Nick had to steady Jarrod in the saddle more than once, but ultimately they made it below the snow line. Here there was a stinging rain, but they didn't have to endure it long before they reached the farm with the angry farmer and wordless wife.

Nick dismounted fast and ran to the door. He got the same frown he'd gotten the last time they came here. He said, "We have an injured man and we're coming in."

Then he helped Heath get Jarrod down out of the saddle. Together, they got Jarrod to the front door and inside. The farmer did not object.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Once inside, Nick and Heath got Jarrod to the sofa that stood about six feet away from the fire. Jarrod was shivering again now, and for that matter, both Nick and Heath were beginning to shiver, too. Nick took the wet blankets from around his brother's shoulders and draped them on other furniture so that they would dry.

They got Jarrod out of his coat and pulled off his boots. His clothing was dry except for some wetness on the bottom of his trousers. His socks were dry so they left them on as they eased him back to lie down.

Heath pulled his own hat and coat off. "Do you have any bandages and astringent?"

The wife went to the kitchen area and pulled their medical supplies out from a lower cabinet. As she did, Heath unwrapped the bandana he'd put around Jarrod's leg, and then he took out his knife and cut the pantleg so that he could get to the wound.

He was ready for the gash and the blood that was still oozing and drying down Jarrod's leg. He wasn't ready for the large amount of bruising that he saw.

"I'm gonna see to the horses," Nick said and went back outside.

Heath thanked the wife for the medical supplies and set about doctoring the gash on Jarrod's leg. Fortunately, the pantleg had covered the calf when the rock cut into it, so it was fairly clean. But it was deeper than Heath hoped. It might need stitches, but he wasn't about to get them tonight.

Heath dabbed some astringent on it, and Jarrod nearly flew up out of the sofa. "Easy, easy," Heath said.

"Then don't try to kill me!" Jarrod said and looked around. "Where are we?"

"Farmhouse at the foot of the mountain," Heath said. "About fifteen miles from home. We'll wait the storm out here."

"McAdams?"

"Yeah, but they don't live here anymore."

Heath bandaged the leg with a tight wad of cloth on the wound to stop the bleeding and again thanked the wife as he gave the medical supplies back to her. "Let's elevate this leg," Heath said, fetched a pillow from a chair nearby, and put it under Jarrod's injured leg.

"Are you hungry?" the wife asked. They were the first words she had ever spoken to them.

"No," Jarrod said quietly.

Heath smiled at the woman. "When my brother comes back in, maybe some bread or something. If you have some broth, maybe we can get some into my other stubborn brother here."

The wife actually smiled a little.

Heath stood up and got his wallet out. "Here," he said and gave the farmer another forty dollars. "For your help and for our keep."

The farmer took it.

"Could I trouble you for another blanket?" Heath asked.

The farmer went into another room and brought out an old, moth-bitten blanket. Heath covered Jarrod up and tucked the blanket underneath him.

"You stay still and warm up," Heath said. "I don't want that gash to bleed much more."

"You shouldn't have come back up there," Jarrod said quietly. "But you two never are very good at doing what I tell you to do."

"Well, I tried to tell Nick you were gonna be mad if we went back up in the snow, but he wouldn't listen. So be mad at him, not me. I only went along to keep him from killing you both."

"Thanks," Jarrod said quietly. A severe shiver overtook him.

Heath squeezed his brother's shoulder. "Just rest and warm up. You'll be fine."

Nick came back in after a while, shivering himself and peeling himself out of his wet coat as fast as he could. He laid it out on the floor by the fire and put his hat there with it, then he grabbed Heath's coat and hat and put them beside his.

Heath was sitting at the kitchen table and eating what looked like some stew and bread, and drinking hot coffee. The wife was putting food down for Nick, and she looked at him, but said nothing.

"Thank you," Nick said quietly and sat down to eat.

"I got a little broth into Jarrod," Heath said, "but he ain't up to eating much yet. He's quit shivering anyway. I think he's gonna be all right in a few hours."

"I'll bet he's mad at us," Nick said.

"You bet right, but he'll get over it as soon as he gets the chance to yell at you. I already got mine. But I was wrong, Nick. I shouldn't have tried to keep you from going back up. I was trying to do what Jarrod wanted, but I was wrong. I'm sorry."

Nick shook his head. "Forget it. Just don't try to tell Pappy HE was wrong. He doesn't take to that real well."

Nick looked at Heath and gave him a small grin that Heath returned.

The farmer sat down at the table with them and his wife set some food in front of him.

Heath said, "I gave Mr. Carter some money for his trouble."

Nick looked at the man and said, "Thanks," deciding to ignore the fact that the man had sold them their own horses.

The farmer just grunted.

The rest of the evening went like that, virtual silence. Heath helped the wife do the dishes, and Nick tried again to get Jarrod to take some broth, sitting down on the edge of the sofa beside him. Jarrod took the broth and it stayed down.

"I guess I'm in for it when we get home," Nick said to his older brother.

"Where's my buck?" Jarrod asked.

Nick smiled. "We had to leave him for the wolves and the coyotes. I heard them thanking you while we were coming down off the mountain."

"You heard the wind howling," Jarrod said. "And I still win the bet."

"You win the bet," Nick agreed.

Jarrod closed his eyes and would not take any more broth, but he said, "Thanks for coming to get me, Nick – but if you ever again do exactly what I tell you _not_ to do, I'm gonna lay you out flat on the hardest floor I can find."

Nick smiled. "Tell you what. You can deck me as soon as we get home, but try not to break your hand. You're already gonna be a sight limping into court. If you can't take notes, you aren't gonna be worth much."

"I'll drag you in to take the notes," Jarrod said.

He was beginning to relax finally. Nick took hold of his hand for a moment. "You get some rest, Pappy. We'll head home in the morning."

"Mmmm," Jarrod said.

Nick got up and carried the bowl and spoon back to the sink, where Heath took it and washed and dried it.

Nick looked over his shoulder and saw the farmer and his wife talking together quietly at the front door. "Listen," Nick said to Heath, very quietly, "I saw something in the barn I didn't like. I think one of us has to be awake all night."

"What did you see?" Heath asked.

"The brands on the horses these people own – they're not the same."

"That don't mean much. They could have bought them and not rebranded."

"Maybe, but remember, they sold us our own horses. I'm not too sure these good people don't help their living out by stealing what they can. We gotta stay awake and keep an eye out. We can say we're just keeping an eye on Jarrod."

"All right. I'll take the first shift till about two, then I'll wake you up. We'll get out of here first thing if Jarrod can sit a horse."

"He'll sit a horse. He'll sit if I have to sit behind him and hold him upright."

XXXXXXX

After everyone went to bed, Nick laid himself out on the floor in front of the fire and Heath sat up with his back against the sofa where Jarrod lay. Before long both Nick and Jarrod were snoring softly – a comforting sound to Heath. He thought for the n'th time how miraculous it was to have brothers, to have them beside him and snoring beautifully, when not even five years ago he had no one. As he let that settle into his heart, everything around him settled down. Tomorrow night they would be home in their own beds.

It was not long after midnight that the farmer came out of the bedroom, and stopped when he saw Heath looking up at him.

"Heard my chickens," the farmer said. "Better go have a look and see if something's after 'em."

Heath just nodded. The farmer went out the front door.

Heath got up slowly, went to the window and parted the curtains, but with the firelight behind him and no light outside, he couldn't see anything but his own reflection. He sat back down in front of the sofa again, feeling Jarrod's forehead just to be sure there was no fever, and there was none. Heath was feeling better and better about things, even if this farmer was a big question mark.

A few minutes later the farmer came back in. He said, "Whatever it was, it's gone now," and went back to bed.

Heath wondered what the man was really up to out there. At around two, when he woke Nick to change the shift, he told him what had happened. Nick grunted a sleepy acknowledgement and sat down with his back against the sofa. He watched Heath add a log to the fire and then curl up to go to sleep.

Nick yawned and rubbed his eyes awake. He didn't hear any rain on the roof now. That was good. Maybe in the morning the sun would be out.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

At sunrise, the sun did in fact begin to shine through the east facing window, and Heath stirred. The farmer was up and went out without a word – Nick and Heath hoped he was going to feed his chickens or collect eggs or both, but Nick took a look out the window to see where he'd gone. He did not go into the barn.

The wife came out soon afterward, and Jarrod began to stir, too. He tried to sit up, but as he did, both Nick and Heath came to help him.

"I'm all right," Jarrod said. "Leg hurts, but I'm fine otherwise. A good night's sleep helped."

"I wouldn't try to stand up just yet," Heath said. "That leg of yours is one big bruise along with that gash."

"Yeah, it hurts," Jarrod said.

He looked up and saw the wife revving up the stove and beginning to cut bacon up for breakfast. Nick saw where Jarrod was looking, and he went over to the woman. "Can I help you with breakfast?" Nick asked.

"No," she said quietly. "I'll have some bacon and eggs ready soon as the stove is going and my husband brings some eggs in. Coffee will be ready in twenty minutes or so."

"I'd sure like to thank you for putting us up last night," Nick said. "We were in pretty sad shape."

The woman glanced at Jarrod. "He's looking better today. I reckon you can be on your way. You're Barkleys, aren't you?"

"Yes," Nick said. "How did you know?"

"Seen the lawyer's picture in the paper once or twice," she said.

"We were out hunting," Nick said.

Heath headed for the front door, saying, "I think I'll go offer Mr. Carter some help."

"No," the woman said quickly. Then she backed off. "He likes to do the morning chores by himself. Gives him time to get his head together for the day, you know?"

"Yeah, I know," Heath said and stayed inside.

He and Nick looked at each other. Now they were pretty sure they'd have to check their gear – at least the most important things – before they left.

Jarrod tried to stand up. "I could visit the house out back."

Heath grabbed hold of him. He saw the woman nod. He said to Jarrod, "Sit down and let me help you put your boots on."

Jarrod did as he was told. Heath lifted his pant leg carefully and checked the bandage. It was clean - the bleeding had stopped. In a couple minutes Heath had Jarrod's boots on him and was helping him out the door.

The woman had gone on to tending the coffee and heating up the frying pan. Nick asked if he could slice up some bread, and she let him do that. As they worked together, Nick asked, "How long have you folks been living here? We're not that far away, and I haven't heard your name before."

"A few months," the woman said.

"Where'd you live before now?" Nick asked.

"In the plains," she said.

"Do you have enough provisions to see you through the winter, you think?"

"Yes, we got enough. Been putting up since we got here."

Nick reckoned that that, at least, was very true. He finished slicing the partial loaf of bread she'd given him. "How's this?"

"Thank you," she said and began cooking the bacon.

The farmer came back in with a dozen or so eggs that he put on the kitchen table. Heath and Jarrod were right behind him.

"It's warming up out there, and there's no snow here," Heath said. "Gonna be a nice day, just muddy."

He helped Jarrod to sit back down on the sofa and began to get their blankets together and rolled up. Jarrod folded the Carters' blanket that he'd slept under and set it on the sofa beside him. The farmer came, picked it up, and took it back into the bedroom.

Nick visited the necessary and came back in. Silence reigned again, and soon they were all eating bacon and eggs. Jarrod passed on the bacon, worried it wouldn't sit well on his stomach.

And soon the Barkley men were up and leaving. They thanked the farmer and his wife again before they went into the barn and began to saddle up. Jarrod was on his feet again, limping badly but at least upright. Heath saddled up for him while Nick checked to make sure their rifles were still in their scabbards. He went through their saddle bags, too, and announced, "Well, we're missing one box of shells and one length of rope, and the rest of our whiskey."

Heath chuckled. "I say we forget about it. Let the man have them and let's get out of here."

Nick grunted, unhappy about it but just as eager to get moving. They moved the horses and their mule out of the barn and into the sunshine. Nick and Heath helped Jarrod mount, and then they took a look at the house just in time to see the curtains suddenly close. They smiled at each other and headed out.

It was a lovely day, muddy from the rain but warming up enough that soon they could shed the overcoats. Before very long they were back on Barkley property, and that's where Nick saw it and raised his hand to stop everyone.

A beautiful, six-point buck was grazing near the edge of a wood. He looked up at them, and they kept still until the buck began to graze again.

Nick slowly and carefully dismounted, slipping his rifle out of the scabbard, saying, "I'm gonna get us one good buck to take home."

Heath and Jarrod watched as Nick moved slowly to a tree and used it to steady his shot. He took very careful aim and fired.

 _Click –_

Nick lowered his gun in confusion as Jarrod and Heath began to laugh. The buck heard them and took off.

Nick checked his rifle. It was empty. None of them had thought to see if Farmer Carter had robbed their rifles of their ammunition, which he obviously had.

Frustrated, Nick put his rifle back in the scabbard with a big frown.

"Come on, Nick," Jarrod said. "We're all alive, and for this trip that has to be the best we can say."

Nick remounted. "We're lucky we still have all our saddles."

"That farmer's probably not planning to live around here for long," Heath said.

"If he sticks to petty theft, he might be all right," Jarrod said.

"I think he's got a couple of stolen horses, too," Nick said. "You want to prosecute?"

Jarrod shook his head. "Things will catch up with him. For now, let's just get home."

XXXXXXX

Their mother and sister looked shocked at the appearances of the men who came in, and worried to see Jarrod limping and the lump on his forehead. Victoria insisted he sit right down in the living room and she pulled the torn pantleg up to have a look.

"It's not so bad," Jarrod said.

"I'll get the medical supplies," Audra said and headed for the kitchen.

Victoria removed Jarrod's boot and the bandage around his leg. "My heavens, this is a bad cut. We'll have to send for the doctor. And the bruises. What happened? Did you get squashed by a rock?"

"Actually, yes," Jarrod said.

"Had a rockslide up on the mountain," Nick said.

Heath said, "I'll tend to the horses and send Ciego for the doc," and went outside.

Victoria sighed a big sigh and looked at her two sons. "Look at you. You both have bloody cuts on your faces. I suppose you're lucky it wasn't worse."

Nick and Jarrod looked at each other and decided not to talk about the snow and how close they came to losing Jarrod up on that mountain. Nick said, "At least Jarrod's leg isn't broken."

"No, it doesn't seem to be," Victoria said, "but you're going to have to baby it for a while. But, down to the important things – how badly did you get caught in that snow?"

Jarrod and Nick looked at each other. She had them.

"We can see it from here, gentlemen," Victoria said. "You didn't think you were going to avoid talking about it, did you?"

"We can't get anything by her, Nick," Jarrod said.

"We got through it," Nick said and left it at that.

Victoria could tell he was leaving a lot out, but she let it go for now. "Well, I guess the most important thing really is, who won the bet?"

Jarrod raised his hand as both he and Nick began to laugh. "Had to leave it to the wolves, though," Jarrod said. "We were in too big a hurry to get out of the snow."

Victoria smiled. "I'm happy you made the right decision on that, at least. It's good to have you all home safe, if a little less than sound."

"It's good to be home safe and a little less than sound," Jarrod said, and gave a look to Nick that thanked him for not doing what he told him to do up on that mountain.

Nick gave a nod. "Sure is."

The End


End file.
